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Saving The Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander
Organization SAVE THE FROGS!
Director Kerry Kriger, Ph.D. www.savethefrogs.com/kerry-kriger
Address 303 Potrero Street #51, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Telephone 831-621-6215
E-mail [email protected]
Web site www.savethefrogs.com
Year Incorporated 2008
More information on the salamanders: www.savethefrogs.com/sclts
1. The organization’s mission, major programs and geographic area served within Santa Cruz
County
Mission:
The mission of SAVE THE FROGS! is to protect amphibian populations and to promote a society
that respects and appreciates nature and wildlife. Amphibian populations have been rapidly
disappearing worldwide and nearly one-third of the world's amphibian species are on the verge of
extinction. Up to 200 species have completely disappeared since 1979 – an extinction rate several
thousand times faster than is natural. Santa Cruz County is home to three threatened amphibian
species: the California Red-Legged Frog, Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander and the California
Tiger Salamander. SAVE THE FROGS! is a grassroots organization that works locally, nationally
and internationally to address the major threats to amphibians: habitat destruction, climate change;
pesticides & pollution; over-collection for frog legs and dissections; invasive species; and infectious
diseases spread by human activity.
Major Programs:
In Santa Cruz this year, we have given 26 free educational presentation thus far in 2011; we have
organized five days of invasive species removal at Antonelli Pond, utilizing several hundred
volunteers; and we are nearing a county-wide ban on the importation, sale, release and possession of
American Bullfrogs -- widely regarded as one of the world's worst invasive species. We initiated
this campaign last year, and once passed it will make Santa Cruz County the first county in the USA
to take such actions against the bullfrogs.
On April 29, 2011 we celebrated Save The Frogs Day, which we conceived and coordinate. This
year’s Save The Frogs Day was the largest day of amphibian education and conservation action in
the planet’s history, with 143 known events in 21 countries. Also this year we held a rally at the US
Environmental Protection (EPA) in Washington, DC to raise awareness of and call for a federal ban
on the use and production of Atrazine, a known endocrine disruptor that is one of America’s most
commonly pesticides. Following the rally, SAVE THE FROGS! Founder Dr. Kerry Kriger gave a
50-minute presentation on amphibian conservation to the Pesticide Division of the EPA and
delivered 10,000+ petition signatures. Currently the EPA is seeking public comments regarding a
potential ban, a major step forward in the campaign. SAVE THE FROGS! recently opened its first
international chapter, SAVE THE FROGS! Ghana (www.savethefrogs.com/ghana). SAVE THE
FROGS! Ghana has a full-time Executive Director and active amphibian conservation campaigns in
West Africa.
Geographic Area Served:
SAVE THE FROGS! programs are based throughout the County and affect all amphibians in the
County and all people who rely on the multitude of ecosystem services that amphibians provide.
2. Community need to be addressed
The Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum croceum) is one of the
western hemisphere's most endangered amphibians. It is endemic to a small section of coastal
terrain southeast of the city of Santa Cruz. Only 23 populations of the salamander are known to
exist, 21 of which are in Santa Cruz County. The primary threat to the species is the urbanization
that surrounds and encroaches on its habitat: coastal property in Santa Cruz is prized for human
homes and for agriculture. The salamander’s populations are overwhelmingly surrounded by
unsuitable, barren farmland that receives heavy pesticide loads. Crossing such inhospitable terrain
would result in the amphibians desiccating in the hot sun or getting picked off by predators. To
make matters worse, the roads that run through the area can serve as death traps for dispersing
salamanders on rainy nights, and these geographical barriers lead to low genetic variation in
populations. Trematode parasites whose populations have increased due to fertilizers in the water
further complicate matters by causing limb deformities in the salamanders. Though we live in one
of the most environmentally educated parts of the world, few of Santa Cruz County’s citizens have
ever heard of the Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander or its plight. It would be extremely unfortunate
to lose our own namesake amphibian.
3. How we plan to address this need and the amount requested
We are requesting $5,000 to educate the people in the communities surrounding the salamanders’
ponds about the plight and importance of the Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander, and most
importantly, ways that they as homeowners and neighbors can reduce their impact on the species.
By the end of our program, a significant proportion of these people will be aware of the presence of
the salamander; its value and rarity; and the primary threats to the species’ survival. Furthermore,
these people once educated will become the primary donor base for the subsequent phase of our
campaign: raising money to purchase critical habitat and thus permanently protect these unique
amphibians. Without an educated public, purchasing land in such an expensive area would remain
unlikely.
This project will be run by SAVE THE FROGS! Founder Dr. Kerry Kriger; Dr. Wes Savage, the
world expert on the species; Dr. Nina D’Amore, the Elkhorn Slough’s resident amphibian biologist;
and SAVE THE FROGS! Advisory Committee Chair Michael Starkey.
4. Three specific results to be achieved with requested funds.
-- Santa Cruz citizens will be educated about the local and worldwide disappearance of amphibians,
in particular the Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander; its whereabouts, threats, importance and needs.
-- The community will be more receptive to measures necessary to ensure the long-term survival of
the Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander.
--We will give educational presentations and create relevant printed materials, signage, webpages,
press releases, email newsletters and a brief documentary, using tools that have proven effective for
SAVE THE FROGS! on past campaigns.
5. How the request fits into the organization’s overall goals and long range plan.
Our goal on a local level is to make Santa Cruz County the most amphibian-friendly county in the
USA. Protecting our namesake amphibian -- one of the most endangered amphibians in the western
hemisphere -- is an integral part of this plan. Education is the basis of all successful environmental
conservation. Thus this initial phase of our campaign to save the Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander
will provide the foundation on which future actions -- such as purchasing critical habitat -- rely.
SAVE THE FROGS! appreciates your support and we are certain that we can not only save the
Santa Cruz Long-Toed Salamander, but that we can make Santa Cruz a model of amphibian
conservation and environmental protection that the rest of the world looks to for ideas, advice and
leadership. Thanks for your consideration.
Kerry Kriger, Ph.D.
SAVE THE FROGS! - Founder, Executive Director, Ecologist
[email protected]
831-621-6215